


You Are The Reason

by eauline



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst and Feels, F/M, Hurts So Good, Major Character Injury, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Song: You Are The Reason (Leona Lewis), Steve Rogers Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-04-18
Packaged: 2021-02-23 11:36:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23710888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eauline/pseuds/eauline
Summary: Steve Rogers needs Natasha Romamoff to see that she's the reason why the sun saved its brightest rays for her.
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov
Comments: 12
Kudos: 90





	You Are The Reason

**There goes my heart beating, 'cause you are the reason.**

It seemed the sun had saved its brightest rays for an angel that evening as the light glistened in Natasha's verdant eyes. She was entirely breathtaking, making Steve's breath hitch in his throat as she stole the air from his lungs without even trying. His heart was pounding in his broad chest, searing heat flaring from his core all the way down to his toes and up to the tips of his fingers.

Her dress, as crimson as her cascading, curled tresses, floated above her midnight heels as she slowly came down the stairwell, her thin fingers gripping the railing for balance and her gaze cast down on the steps. Her long, dark eyelashes brushed the arch of her cheekbones, and her golden eyeshadow sparkled in the fading sunlight. As she reached the bottom step, her emerald eyes looked up, meeting Steve's in a gaze that made his heart skip a beat, and his hands began to sweat.

It was no secret that Steve Rogers couldn't take his azure eyes off his best friend, Natasha Romanoff.

Like everyone else, she knew it too.

Ever since they'd brought down the Winter Solider and Hydra together, ever since they were working together as partners, along with the other Avengers, the air crackled and sizzled with ardor for one another. In the beginning, she omitted the vestige between them. As partners, they had to work together seamlessly, like the beat to her favorite song by Calum Scott, and she spent more time with him than anyone she ever had before. Then, she'd kissed him on the escalator, and he'd held her so carefully - _so adoringly_ \- as his soft lips fit between hers like the last, missing puzzle piece to her heart. Then, he'd told her that he trusted her, and they started having weekly movie nights, and he started showing all his favorite places around D.C. while she told him about her past, things she hadn't even told Clint.

It was only then that Natasha realized the lines of friendship had begun to blur, and she was falling for him - _compromised_. Maybe, she'd already fallen, but she was too scared to admit it because she thought that love was for children.

"You might want to close your mouth, Captain. You'll catch a fly." Sam murmured next to him as he adjusted his earpiece and tucked the wire into the sleeve of his black suit.

Steve cleared his throat thickly, reluctantly dragging his eyes away from Natasha and looked at his teammate and friend beside him. "I never thought I'd see you cleaned up like this." He said, absentmindedly reaching up to comb his fingers through his hair, only to recall that Natasha insisted he slick his hair back with gel, and dropped his hand at his side.

"You wouldn't have, but we have to go undercover." Sam replied, vexingly tugging at the collar of his suit.

It was supposed to be a relatively simple and uncomplicated mission. Although, Steve had heard those words many times before, and things had gone downhill so fast like a row of dominos, so he wasn't counting on it to be simple.

This time, the Avengers were hunting down two terrorists expected to be at a high-end club that night to strike a deal with another organization. The plan was for Natasha to distract the two men, while Steve, Sam, and Tony apprehended the other organization and then eventually, the two men. It wasn't the type of mission Steve typically took, but Natasha had asked him to accompany her and the others. She had him wrapped around her finger; he would do anything for her and go anywhere with her, even on this mission.

 _As best friends_ , he told himself.

As partners.

Her heels clicked against the wooden floors of the private room of the club as she strode over to he and Sam. She perceived the soft, flush on Steve's cheeks, his _oh_ , so kissable lips curving up in a handsome smile as she handed him an earpiece. "Chanel 4," she told him, letting her eyes take in everything that was Steve Rogers. He looked like he stepped straight out of a magazine, his suit embellishing his vast muscular frame that had her wondering if he was really a God, not Thor. His blonde hair was slicked back, as she'd implored him to do, and his captivating eyes made her knees weak. She wasn't sure how she was supposed to complete the mission when all she wanted to do was steal him away for herself.

"Thank you, Nat." He said, his fingers brushing against the palm of her hand as he took the communication device from her. It sent a delicious shiver up her spine and goosebumps ghosted across her pale skin. "You' cold?" He asked, perceiving her shudder. 

_If only he knew._

She shook her head, concealing her sentiment as she glanced between the man who had her soul and Sam. "Make sure Tony gets the other one. I'm going to head down, so try and stay out of trouble." She said with a chaste smirk, turning on her heels and heading down to the bottom floor of the club.

It was already crowded and loud, the bass reverberating through her as she slipped in between the men and women to sit down at the colossal bar. The men were due to arrive any minute, as the tracking system under the sleeve of her dress showed, and she ordered herself a glass of wine from the bartender, whose gaze was on the swell of her breasts the entire time she spoke to him. She was used to going undercover, whether she was completing missions for the KGB, S.H.I.E.L.D, or Fury however, that didn't necessarily mean she liked to. Most men viewed her as an object for them to fuck and those who didn't, saw her as a weapon to be used and stowed away until she was needed again.

Over the past few weeks, she'd spent most of her days with Steve, who treated her as if she was the most exquisite thing he ever laid eyes on. She'd gotten way too acclimatized with his presence, with the way he looked at her and slid his arm around her shoulder as they watched a movie. She relished in it all, and she would much rather be lounging on the couch with Steve than in a booming club with a mission of seducing terrorists.

"Are you here all alone tonight?" A man asked, rendering her contemplation. She took a sip of her wine and turned in her seat to look at the man who stood much too close for her comfort. It only took her a second to recognize one of the men that they were hunting down; he'd _literally_ walked right into her trap.

After Natasha left their private room, Steve stepped out on the balcony to overlook the booming club. The music pumped through his body as his azure eyes scanned the room, omitting the hundreds of dancers and waitresses with swooping v-lines of their shirts. He perceived Natasha sitting at the bar with their two targets standing around her, her hand on one of their chest's as she held their attention seamlessly. Their beady eyes remained on hers like she was the only women in the entire club, leaning towards her as they implored her to drink the alcohol they ordered from the bartender. He saw her shake her head from afar as one of the men pushed a martini at her, and she grasped the collar of his jacket, pulling him down to her level and whispering in his ear.

**I'm losing my sleep, please come back now.**

Jealously arose deep inside him, curling its wicked fingers around him and squeezing him viciously as he watched them put their filthy hands on her. He knew it was an well-practiced act, that she wasn't interested in the terrorists, and she had to portray herself wantonly to complete the mission. Even if she was attracted to one of the men, it wasn't his business, and he had no reason to be envious. He was her best friend, nothing less and nothing more, and even though he _did_ want more, he was too scared to ruin things between them and lose her for good. She deserved the world, but he was afraid he couldn't give that to her.

Although, he was truly selfish and couldn't live without her. 

There were times he thought that _maybe_ she needed him too; times when she'd find him after a nightmare with tears staining her cheeks, clinging to him like he was her lifeline as he held her through the flashbacks. The times when he'd kiss her forehead and she'd lean into his touch, her eyes filled with something agnate to adoration. The times she'd tuck herself into his side as they watched television and swiftly fall asleep in his strong arms.

**There goes my mind racing.**

He dragged his eyes away from Natasha and the men as Tony and Sam came up behind him on the balcony. "When is the other organization supposed to arrive?" Steve asked, convening on the mission at hand.

If he didn't focus, he could get one of them killed!

"They should be here any minute." Tony replied with a casual shrug of his shoulders.

"Let's head down then." Steve said with a short nod. As they descended down the staircase, omitting the many lustful stares of the women throughout the club, none of them perceived the issues that'd begun to arise at the bar.

_The organization had already arrived._

Crowding around Natasha and the two men with sinister smirks, the five men of the organization had seemed to overlook the logistics of the deal and were focused entirely on Natasha. 

She wasn't scared, _no_.

She'd been in situations like this before; overwhelmed, vulnerable, and significantly outnumbered. She'd always gotten out of them, usually unharmed, however, she was scared for the hundreds of innocent people in the club, dancing without a care in the world and blissfully unaware of the terrorist groups that wouldn't hesitate to kill them all. She knew she needed backup from her team, and she hit the communication device on her wrist, signaling for one of her teammates to come to her aid. She hoped it would be Steve; they worked together best. He was her partner, after all.

"I don't know if I could handle all of you. We may have to find a few other women to join us." She said with a feigned accent, fluttering her long eyelashes coyly and propping her elbows up on the bar behind her. The cool granite pressed into her skin, and she sighed internally. The thought of sleeping with any of them disgusted her entirely, and she felt _dirty_ being surrounded by them all, especially when she let one of them brush their hand across her toned thigh or her pale arm once in a while to play the part of the women she was supposed to be.

Suddenly, the bustling of men around her parted as someone began to push through them. Her pulse pricked as her verdant eyes locked with Steve's as he barreled through the men around her. Determination glinted in his orbs, the arch of his jaw clenched as his broad shoulder jostled one of the men, making him stumble to his knees.

_What was he doing?_

Her eyebrows creased in dismal as she sat up in her seat, her shoulders pulled back as her muscles tensed. He looked deviously attractive, utterly driven like his mind was set on her and only her. However, as good as he looked, she'd asked for help from a teammate, not a knight in shining armor. If he wasn't careful, he could bane the act she'd played so well and the ploy she was planting on the men.

"Hey-..." She began, unsure of what he was planning to do to assist her with her part of the mission that she'd planned so meticulously, she thought nothing could possibly go haywire. 

He came at her fast; planting his hands on her waist and leaning into her, her back arching into the bar behind her as warmth flourished through her body at his touch.

_What was he doing!_

Then, he kissed her.

She gasped into his mouth as his soft lips caressed hers, her eyes shut and her heart racing as one of his large hands cupped her neck, drawing her against him as the other smoothed over her lower back.

She couldn't breathe - she couldn't _think_. She was encompassed by everything that was Steve and everything that he made her feel; his lips on hers, the hard-ridge of his muscles pressed against her small frame, the sparks alighting in her core, and the heavenly feeling she felt as he kissed her breathless.

She kissed him back, omitting the mission entirely as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her calves hooked around his hips. All that mattered was him. In her world - in that moment, it was only them.

**And you are the reason that I'm still breathing.**

He rolled her plump, bottom lip between his before his tongue slid inside her mouth and caressed hers in the most sinful way. Her core clenched pleasurably as her lower abdomen tightened, heat pooling between her thighs that she felt all the way down to her toes. She moaned - _oh God_ \- did she moan. Even the men around them heard her. The sound evidently spurred Steve on as he dropped his hand from around her neck to caress up her leg. She was gasping, spiraling as she fell even more for the man who held her so tightly.

She eventually _had_ to pull back, her head spinning and her body pulsing, humming in his proximity that was staggering. Only when their lips parted and the ardor faded from her mind did she realize that Sam and Tony were screaming through the communication system. She quickly pulled back from Steve, unwinding her legs from him and shattering the entrancing spell between them as she listened to her other, two teammates.

"We got them! Stop it, you idiots!" Tony shouted, sounding humored but vexed.

She stood off her stool, not daring to peek up at Steve, who was entirely flustered. She looked around and realized that the men around her were gone, apprehended by Sam and Tony while her and Steve made out like the world was ending.

 _Jesus_ , how long had they been kissing?

She heard Sam sigh into his earpiece. "Finally... meet us outside." He said before there was silence once again.

Natasha inhaled shakily, finally tilting her head up to glance at Steve. He looked thoroughly wrecked towering above her, his pupils blown wide, his chest rising and falling rapidly, and she knew the kiss had affected him just like it had to her. A tidal wave of pride surged through her, knowing that she could affect the super-solider like this, along with relief as she knew that Steve felt the same way. Her legs trembled ever, so slightly, and they began to head to the door to meet Sam and Tony outside. They were forced together by the close proximity of the dancers, and she purposely jabbed her elbow into his side. "What was the plan, Rogers?" She asked venomously.

She wasn't mad at him. _No_ , definitely not. She was just angry at herself - that she was so _in love_ with the man that she couldn't convene on missions.

She was dangerously compromised.

"Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable..." He mumbled over the music blasting through their ears, flushing even more vividly as he alluded to the time she kissed him on the escalator. "Uncomfortable enough that they'll walk away and find themselves surrounded by Tony and Sam."

She wasn't sure whether she wanted to kiss him again or slap him. "God, you're a genius." She said, trying not to laugh as the anger swiftly dissipated from her. She could never stay mad at him for long, no matter how hard she tried. He looked down at her sheepishly, a smile on his lips as he placed his hand on her lower back to lead her through the throng of people. It was a paradoxical plan, but it'd worked, and the mission was complete.

At least, that's what they'd thought.

Out of nowhere, someone grasped the ends of Natasha's hair, yanking her backwards away from Steve and tilting her head back. A man glared at her with hatred glinting in his dark eyes, and his other hand came up to squeeze her breast _hard_. She mustered a pained gasp, staring into his eyes stubbornly even as pain twisted down her chest and into her stomach.

"You think you' got us a-..." He was abruptly cut off as Steve grabbed him by the neck and threw him to the ground just as Natasha had braced herself to bring the man down.

People gasped around them, quickly backing away as the fight broke out.

Natasha winced as pain continued to shoot up her breast and down her spine but then, it all faded. The world stopped turning around her as the man yanked a large knife from his waistband and lunged at Steve, who'd turned away from their attacker to look at Natasha with anguished concern. She only had a second to think, but she knew what she had to do. _She loved him_. She couldn't bare the thought of him getting hurt if she could protect him. She couldn't live without him... the trajectory of the knife was aimed for his neck!

"No!" She shouted, jumping in front of Steve. She held her arm out in front of her, but it was no use. The knife slashed across her abdomen, and she collapsed to the ground.

**I'm hopeless now.**

All Steve saw was blood. _Her_ blood was everywhere. On his suit, on the floor, on her dress... all he saw was crimson red. He snapped the man's neck with no hesitation before he threw the vile human away from Natasha and fell to his knees beside her. There was chaos around him, people screaming and running from the club, fearing for their lives, but none of that mattered to Steve. Tears blurred his eyes, but he still saw her so clearly, her eyes closed, her heaving chest, and the blood. _So much blood._

"Nat, love. Stay with me!" He shouted, trying to push down the hysterical sobs that rose in his throat as he yanked off his jacket and applied firm pressure to the wound across her stomach. With his other hand, he grasped her chin as her head lolled to the side. Panic arose within him, desperation and anguish bubbling over as she squeezed her eyes shut. "Stay awake!"

The pain in his own chest was staggering as her blood quickly soaked through his jacket. He couldn't lose her. She was his world, the one who unfroze his heart and showed him there were so many reasons to live. Their lives together were just starting: he couldn't bare if she was ripped away from him like this.

He was about to take his shirt off to apply more pressure when Sam and Tony ran up to them, and Sam slid off his coat, tossing it to Steve.

"I saw what happened. Medics are on their way, okay Nat?" Tony said desperately, leaning over her. "Open your eyes! Don't pull this shit on us!"

Her eyelashes fluttered, and her lips parted to mumble something that none of them heard. Steve continued to hold steady pressure with the jackets, his shoulders heaving with the sobs he managed to hold back as he watched the color fade from her face, and the tension ebb from her body. "Natasha! God, no..." He said, entirely despondent and helpless. Sobs threatened to tear through him, but he held himself together _for her._

It was a minute later, a minute of utter panic, shouting, and trembling until Steve was pulled away and medics surrounded her. He should've been relieved, but he could still see so much _red_.

They moved her onto a cot, quickly loading her into the ambulance and speeding away, leaving the three of them standing there shocked and broken. "I should've pushed her. I sh-..." Steve began, his shoulders heaving as it dawned on him that his best friend was fighting for her life because she protected him. Because she threw herself in front of him before he even realized what was going on.

Because he wasn't good enough to protect her.

Sam shook his head, grasping his friend's shoulders and leading him out of the club that police had began to section off with caution tape as they arrested the terrorists. "Let's get cleaned up and go to the hospital." He murmured. "We need to call Fury too." He then sighed.

Tony, the least bloody of them all, slid into the drivers seat of their rental car that was pulled up to the curb. Sam took the passenger seat, and Steve got into the backseat, holding his hands out in front of him and trying not to smear blood on the leather interior of the car. Trepidation rose inside him as they drove to the hotel in tense silence. There were so many _what ifs_ , so many things he should've done differently on the mission and so many reasons why he should've gotten in the ambulance with Natasha so she wouldn't be alone.

Heaven knows how much she hated hospitals.

The hotel was only a few blocks away from the club and as soon as they arrived, the three leapt out of the car and rushed to their rooms to clean up so they would be allowed into the hospital. Steve hurriedly stripped out of his imbued suit and wiped the blood off him, ruining the towels in the suite that were surely going to give the housekeeping staff a fright. As soon as he tugged on a hoodie and a pair of grey sweatpants, he rushed down to their car, but Tony and Sam had yet to come from their rooms.

So, he ran.

He knew he looked like a manic running through the bustling streets of the city, and he felt like one too. However, with the adrenaline pumping through his body, his arms propelling himself forward and the muscles in his legs amble, he didn't care. In that moment, he only cared about getting to Natasha. Fortunately, the hospital was closer than he thought, and he ran into the lobby like he barreled through the terrorists that had been surrounding Natasha. People stared at him with wide eyes, pulling out their phones to snap photos as they recognized Captain America. A nurse gestured at him, her eyes sympathetic as she led him past the nurse's station. "We tried to contact you, as you're Ms. Romanoff's emergency contact, but were unable to reach you." The nurse said, glancing back at him. "I'm glad you found your way."

"How is she? Is she okay?" He asked as she led him through doorway after doorway. His mind was racing but instinctively, he retained each escape route as he mulled over the fact that he was Natasha's emergency contact.

Little did she know that she was his as well.

"Yes, she's quite alright. She's all stitched up and currently undergoing a blood transfusion." The nurse replied. She scanned her badge, and the secure doors opened to the ICU.

Steve sighed with relief, combing his fingers through his tousled hair. As they walked down the long hallway, he quickly texted Tony and Sam to let them know that he had made it to the hospital. He also texted Clint, letting him know the mission had gone haywire but that Natasha was okay. He knew if he didn't, Clint would be fuming.

The nurse pointed to the section where Natasha lay, and Steve rushed into the room. Relief surged through him like tidal wave as he saw her propped up in the hospital bed by dozen of pillows, her lips turning up in a breathtaking smile as she saw him.

**I'd climb every mountain and swim every ocean just to be with you.**

"What happened to your hair?" She asked as he stepped past the doorframe and came up to her bedside. "It's all messed up!"

He laughed, grasping her hand in his and running his thumb over the pulse in her wrist as if he held her hand all the time. His apprehension faded swiftly as he saw that she was truly okay, and his racing heartbeat slowed as a staggering weight was lifted off his shoulders. "You're in the hospital, and the first thing you do, is ask me about my hair?" He chuckled. As he sat down at her bedside, he gently squeezed her hand and leaned back in the chair, feeling the tension ebb from his body as his body hummed in her presence. "I'm sorry I didn't go with you in the ambulance. I know you hate being in a hospital."

She shook her head, tilting her head back against the pillows and gazing at him. Her verdant eyes were glazed over from the painkillers coursing through her veins, and he tried not to smirk at her somnolence.

"You're here now, aren't you, _love_." She said, drawing out the word 'love' as she insinuated to him calling her the endearing name as he kneeled over her in panic.

It only took him a second to realize what she was alluding to. Vivid flush rose to his cheeks, and he went to draw his hand back from hers, but she held onto him. He knew how he felt about her - he _loved_ her. He loved her and although, he longed to tell her one day, he wasn't sure if he was ready to while she lay in a hospital bed, so drugged that she might not even remember his proclamation tomorrow.

"I think we need to talk." She hummed, pressing her palm against his.

Suddenly, anger flared in his core. His heart clenched painfully as he thought about the fact that he could've lost her. She'd been stabbed because she sacrificed herself for him. She was in a hospital, a place she hated so much, _for him._

"Yeah, we need to talk about what you did, Nat. It was completely unnecessary... you could've died and that's not the way this is supposed to work!" He exclaimed, abruptly pulling his hand back from hers.

Her expression dropped, her fingers apprehensively twisting the blanket in her hands as she watched him stand from the chair beside her bed and pace the length of the room. Her sweet, abashed Steve Rogers was gone - this was Captain America on a mission, driven for answers that she couldn't tell him yet. "'That's not the way this is supposed to work?' I don't need a protector, Rogers." She snapped, masquerading her ardor for him with acrimony to put her defenses up.

He turned towards her, and she perceived the tears reflecting in his orbs, his expression broken as he stared at her. The tension between them was so thick she could've sliced through it with her knife, but she didn't want to argue with him. Especially, not now. Not when her head was spinning and her body was aching. All she wanted to do was lay down with him and curl up against his side, his strong arms around her and his soft lips against hers, easing the horror she felt every time she envisaged the man lunging at Steve's throat with a knife.

"You don't understand, Natasha. I protect you with everything I have because I can't lose you! I would die for you and the last thing I want is for you to die protecting me." He said, his voice raw with emotion. "But now you're hurt because I failed you!"

**And fix what I've broken, oh, 'cause I need you to see that you are the reason.**

"And you don't think that I feel the same way? Every, damn time you throw yourself in front of me without your shield!" She shouted, tears welling in her eyes. She wiped at them fiercely, looking away from him and staring down at her pale, cold hands. She was silent for a long moment before she spoke again. "Go... I need some space."

He was taken back at her words. "I'm sorry. Let's... let's just talk about this later, okay?" He implored, but she shook her head.

"Go, Steve. Please." She snapped, sliding the blanket up to her shoulders and closing her eyes.

• • •

 **There goes my hand shaking, and you are the reason my heart keeps bleeding. I need you now.**

Steve hadn't seen Natasha in two, long weeks. She hadn't wanted to see him while she was in the hospital and now, she was back at her apartment in New York, shutting him out entirely and ignoring his calls. However, he wasn't giving up.

_Not on her._

He knew she couldn't avoid him forever. After all, most of her belongings were at his flat in Washington D.C.

He tucked the bouquet of Sunflowers in his arm, smiling at the elderly concierge of her apartment complex whom he'd spent most of yesterday afternoon talking to after Natasha slammed the door in his face.

"Go woo your girl, Captain! Today is the day!" The veteran waved, his smile bright and hopeful for Steve.

He chuckled, hoping that Rob was right and that today may be the day Natasha would, at least, talk to him. He cordially tipped his WWII hat she had bought for him while they were on the run from Hydra nearly two years ago and continued to the elevator. He took the lift to her floor and stepped out, inhaling a deep sigh as he walked up to her door. He knocked twice and heard her footsteps on the hardwood floors.

"Fuck out of here, Steve." She shouted through the door, seeing him through the peep-hole.

He couldn't help but roll his azure eyes. "You know you could, at least, explain why you're avoiding me." He retorted, leaning up against the door, his back against the frame as he closed his eyes. "It's been hell without my best friend, and you're making me feel like I'm six years old begging for your attention."

She was silent on the other side of the door.

"I could break this down..." He mumbled.

Suddenly, she yanked the door open, and he stumbled backwards into her apartment, catching himself just before he fell. He heard her soft laughter as she stepped back from him but as his eyes met hers, the smile dissipated from her face. 

"You're so stubborn." She said, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked at him.

He handed the flowers to her, and she slowly took them from him, avoiding his eyes. With a heavy sigh, she turned away from him and walked into the kitchen, filling an hourglass vase and putting the flowers in it. He watched her; how she moved around the kitchen, heedful of her abdomen; the fading bruise on her chest that he perceived below the v-line of her tang-top; the dark circles under her eyes and her flushed cheeks.

His heart twisted painfully.

_He'd truly failed her._

"Can we talk now?" He asked dejectedly, breaking the silence between them. He kicked off his shoes and walked into the kitchen, leaning up on the granite counter across from her. "Look, I just want to go back to the way things were. We can forget what I said in the hospital but you have to know, that I will never stop protecting you. Although, I can't even do that..."

**If I could turn back the clock, I'd make sure the light defeated the dark. I'd spend every hour, of every day, keeping you safe.**

He looked down at his hands clasped together in front of him, feeling his heart sink as she turned her back to him. He thought she was going to kick him out, and he'd have to leave simply because that's what she wanted, and he had to respect that.

However, she finally spoke.

"I can't forget, Steve. I love you, okay? I love you, and I'm so fucking scared of losing you, but I'm also scared of loving you." She said, her voice raw with emotion as tears arched down her cheekbones. "You have to understand what this is like for me... I want to run from all this, but I _can't_."

His heart skipped a beat, and his world tilted on his axis. All he could hear was the blood rushing to his head; all he could feel was his infinite love for her, as well as the longing to ease her apprehension and show her that she didn't have to be scared. "Natasha, I love you too." He said without hesitation, walking around the counter to her. He grasped her waist in his hands, gently turning her to face him. She looked up at him with her verdant eyes, glassy with tears, and he reached up to wipe her cheek with his thumb. "I know that you already know that I love you, but you need to know that we can do this. Whatever you want, whether it's a relationship or jus-..."

She cut him off by pressing her lips to his. 

**And I'd climb every mountain, and swim every ocean just to be with you and fix what I've broken.**

This kiss was different than the other two. This time, she poured every once of ardor she had into him, their lips moving together slowly - _lovingly_ \- as her arms came up around his neck to draw him closer, closer, and _closer_. This time, she didn't have a reason to kiss him. They weren't on the run or undercover. This time, she didn't need a reason to kiss him, and she knew with absolute certainty that she was meant to be here, with him.

She pulled back slightly to murmur against his soft lips, her nose brushing against his. "I want it all, Steve. I want a life with you." She said, and relief crashed through her as she professed what she had been fighting for so long - _too long_.

She'd been trained as the Black Widow that love wasn't real and fairytales were just that; stories read to little girls to ignite false hope inside them. However, little by little, Steve had drew her in and showed her that she didn't need anyone but that it was okay to want someone, that it was okay to love and trust a man who would go to the ends to the Earth for her, when she would do the same for him.

"So do I, my love. I'm going to marry you, one day. I swear." He said, tilting his head down to capture her lips in a kiss that drove searing heat to her core.

"I can't wait to see the day." She smiled into the kiss.

**Oh, 'cause I need you to see that you are the reason.**


End file.
